Ruth Van Der Weide

Objective

My objective is to obtain a position as an Account Manager with a growing company A company where my sales experience can be leveraged to its fullest.

Interest

Biking

Golf

Reading

Travel

Physical Exercise

Being Outdoors

Summary

Sales Manager with successful history of constructing business development strategies, establishing key account relationships, and achieving high levels of customer retention in competitive markets. Excellent strategic planning, presentation, communication, organizational, and analytical skills.

Work History

Work History

2005 - 2009

National Sales Manager

Russell Corporation/Fruit of the Loom

Devised and executed action plans for entering the advertising specialties industry (ASI) and managing top 40 ASI accounts. Promoted opportunities for branded and private label programs through sales calls and appearances at trade shows. Engaged customers in dialogue regarding business objectives; created programs that achieved product, pricing, and service requirements; and negotiated contracts and renewals. Partnered with manufacturing and logistics colleagues to assure proper servicing of customer programs.

·Introduced Russell Athletic to the ASI market for corporate initiative, opened new accounts, grew sales from $0 to $1 million within one year, and transitioned business to Fruit of the Loom following acquisition.

·Delivered year-over-year increase of 212% in Russell Athletic-ASI sales and direct sales of Fruit of the Loom Activewear (Q1/Q2 in 2009).

·Established relationships with key accounts and opened distribution to promotional product companies, such as Staples Promotional Products (formerly American Identity).

·Developed the first Russell Athletic catalog for the ASI market by making product selections and writing content for market introduction.

·Contributed to design and adoption of in-house CRM system by advising on applications useful to sales management; formulated recommendations to streamline business processes.

·Led the successful deployment of a private label program for major accounts: J America Retail and J America Sportswear.

1999 - 2004

Sales Manager

Intex Corporation

Initiated and managed relationships with key accounts and major buying groups that represented 1,200 distributors. Conducted industry research, identified prospects, generated and followed up on leads.

·Captured significant market share and converted 9 of the top 10 uniform rental laundries from a 50/50 poly/cotton fabric to the 100% polyester Xport product.

·Uncovered a niche market (safety apparel) and added a high visibility line to service this market.

·Contributed to the development of marketing materials and packaging graphics.

·Effectively promoted the company’s rotary screen-printing capabilities and opened the uniform market for the print division.

1991 - 1999

Account Representative

Legend Marketing/Division of K-Products

Established and managed account relationships with uniform retailers/catalogers, distributors, and uniform manufacturers for headgear product line. Made presentations to end-users that consisted of US Air, U.S. Forest Service, and FedEx; negotiated contract pricing.

·Increased sales from a base of $700,000 to $4 million, representing 40% of headgear volumes.

·Opened three major accounts in six months with combined potential of $1 million.

·Converted a large uniform distributor from an import line to Legend’s domestically produced line at a higher price point by marketing its premium quality and faster service.

·Worked with engineering to develop a police and security line by specifying colors, styles, and pricing; successfully introduced this line to the marketplace.

Education

1996 - 1997

BS Business

Bellevue University

Finihsed degree while working full time which included extensive travel for a National Territory

1976 - 1978

Education

Central College

Skills

Skills

Sales Presentations

Made Product presentations to both large and small groups. 90% of the presenations created a new customer or created an opporutnity to follow up with a product quote.
Represented company at Trade Shows

Territory Management/Budget Management

Maintained Expense Budget - history of always being under budget while still meeting company sales goals
Managed National Terriitory for over 10 years

Product Launches/Market Introductions

Led product launch of 9 itmes for a well know brand into a new maket - First year $1MM in sales - average price $9.00/unit
Introduced new inovative product to the Rental Uniform Market - sales increased $12MM in first 3 years
Introduced new product to niche market - Police/Security - became key supplier
Launched new company service - landed two large accounts within first 6 months - Sales of $3MM - average price $1.50/unit

Brand Strategy & Positioning

Introduced a line of branded apparel into a market that was already saturated with this type of product.. Within a year I was able to sign on 75% of the Top companies in this market.

Customer Management & Retention

An example of my Customer Management is stated in this recommendation from one of my largest customers.
Details of the Recommendation: "I've been on the receiving end of Ruth's dedication to service, and it's a nice place to be! Just when we had become convinced that we couldn't get the service that we needed from any of the t-shirt / sweatshirt suppliers, Ruth visited our company, showed her products, and listened to our team, so she had a clear understanding of our needs. She not only was able to convince Russell Corp. to comply with our requests, but she stayed involved in our account, to make sure our problems were dealt with quickly and professionally. She won our business, and quite honestly kept our business by providing us exemplary customer service."